1942
HALL IV · February 24–25, 1942
The Battle of Los Angeles
1,400 anti-aircraft rounds, one unidentified object
Los Angeles, California
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In the early hours of February 25, 1942 — eleven weeks after Pearl Harbor — the U.S. Army's 37th Coast Artillery Brigade fired approximately 1,400 rounds of anti-aircraft ammunition at one or more unidentified slow-moving objects over Los Angeles. Six civilians died, most from heart attacks or traffic accidents during the blackout. The U.S. Navy attributed the alarm to a 'false alarm'; the Army to 'unidentified airplanes.' The official explanation evolved across decades and remains formally unresolved.
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